Browns coming together under Pat Shurmur (with video)

Cleveland Browns head coach Pat Shurmur yells during the fourth quarter of an NFL football game against the Oakland Raiders in Oakland, Calif., Sunday, Dec. 2, 2012. The Browns won 20-17. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)

No construction engineer wants to walk away from a building project before the final brick is in place, and it works the same way for a coach who started with the football equivalent of barren land.

The Browns (4-8) are halfway to matching their longest winning streak since returning to the NFL in 1999. They won their last four games to finish 2009 with a flourish and will be gunning for their third straight on Sunday when they host the 2-10 Chiefs.

Pat Shurmur did not use his Monday news conference to campaign for his job, but he definitely sounded like a man who believes the future is brighter than the past was for the Browns. Seventeen players on the 53-man roster are rookies, and 10 more have had fewer than two full seasons in the league. That's half the roster.

General Manager Tom Heckert arrived with his pick and shovel in January of 2010. Only 10 players on the team in 2009 remain.

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"When you see young players doing things in this league, because you expect them to, and you know that they're not anywhere near how good they can be, then, yeah, that's good," Shurmur said. "I look forward to seeing these guys have good careers, very productive careers, hopefully all of them here in Cleveland.

"We're making improvements that are pointing toward winning. I felt us improving throughout the beginning of this season, and we couldn't get over the hump. Now we're finding a way to get over the hump."

It sounds crazy for a team that's 4-8, but the Browns are mathematically alive in the wild-card hunt in the AFC. After the Colts (8-4), the only non-division leaders with winning records are the Steelers and Bengals, both at 7-5 in the AFC North. The Chargers are second in the West at 4-8 and the Bills, Jets and Dolphins are all 5-7 in the East.

The Browns have already scored more points (229) than last year, when they scored 218 points, 30th in the league. They have 26 takeaways -- eight more than all of 2011.

"My concerns are always for our team and our coaches moving forward," Shurmur said. "I really believe in this group we have, and I really believe this is the foundation of something that could be really good. Even though I say that and believe in it, until we start winning football games, that's what shows it. That's really my concern.

"Some of the other stuff about me personally -- what more can they say about me (on sports talk radio)? Right? I mean, really, think about it. I don't listen to it, but I'm told frequently about it. I think that's where the thick skin part comes in."

Ahtyba Rubin is one of the graybeards on the team. The huge defensive tackle was a sixth-round draft pick in 2008, which means he played for Romeo Crennel and Eric Mangini before Shurmur.

Only kicker Phil Dawson, special teams ace Joshua Cribbs, linebacker D'Qwell Jackson and left tackle Joe Thomas have been around longer than Rubin.

Rubin said he is seeing a more confident Shurmur this season.

"He (Shurmur) is getting more comfortable, and he knows the players more," Rubin said Monday. "He's getting acclimated and has a feel for our opponents.

"Coming in and playing the Steelers, the Ravens and the Bengals is pretty difficult every year. This conference and division is hard to get acclimated to."

The Browns are 2-3 in the AFC North. It is the first time they won more than once in the division since 2007, when they were 3-3. They conclude the season with a division game in Pittsburgh on Dec. 30.

"There are things I see better now," Shurmur said. "I know my coaches and players better. I understand how everybody on our team is going to respond in most situations. Yeah, I think there are things we're doing better, me included."

The Browns were 4-12 in 2011 in Shurmur's first year, when they did not have the benefit of an offseason. They were 3-3 and lost nine of their last 10 games.